Thank you for standing by, and welcome to the Paladin Energy Ltd Conference Call. All participants are in a listen-only mode. There will be a presentation followed by a question-and-answer session. If you wish to ask a question, you'll need to press the star key followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. I would now like to hand the conference over to Paul Hemburrow, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Please go.
Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining today's call. I'm joined this morning by Anna Sudlow, our Chief Financial Officer; Alex Rybak, our Chief Commercial Officer; and Paula Raffo, Head of Investor Relations. As you would have seen this morning, we're pleased to have announced a fully underwritten equity raising of AUD 300 million designed to provide Paladin with enhanced balance sheet flexibility as we advance the development of the PLS project towards a final investment decision alongside the continuing ramp-up of operations at the Langer Heinrich Mine. This equity raise comprises of AUD 231 million underwritten ASX institutional placement, a Canadian bought deal financing on the TSX to raise CAD 30 million, and an underwritten AUD 36 million sale of existing Paladin shares which were acquired through the Fission Uranium transaction in 2024.
Additionally, we're pleased to offer eligible retail shareholders the opportunity to participate through a share purchase plan of up to AUD 20 million. The funds raised will support several near-term priorities. AUD 170 million on PLS development, including completion of front-end engineering and design at the PLS project in 2026. Detailed design work ahead of the final investment decision and construction at PLS. General and administrative costs to support permitting approvals, First Nations and community engagement, and expansion of our Paladin team in Canada. AUD 20 million on infill and exploration drilling at both the PLS project and Langer Heinrich Mine during FY26. AUD 100 million on general working capital to support the ramp-up of Langer Heinrich Mine operations to full mining and processing capacity by FY2027. And additional exploration activities at the PLS project, providing further balance sheet flexibility.
The PLS project is a world-class undeveloped uranium asset, and this equity raising enables us to advance the project towards development, de-risking it through FEED and detailed design, and delivering significant value to our shareholders. The strong economics support our unwavering commitment to bringing the PLS project into production by early next decade while continuing to de-risk the development through FEED and conducting further exploration to identify future expansion opportunities. I'd also like to provide a brief update on our activities at Langer Heinrich for the first two months of FY2026. Performance during the September quarter has met our expectations, and the mine remains on track to achieve FY2026 guidance. We recorded production of 727,000 lbs at a cost of $40.70 per pound.
In summary, this equity raising provides Paladin with a financial flexibility to unlock the strategic value of the PLS project while supporting the ongoing ramp-up of operations at Langer Heinrich Mine. We're grateful for the strong support from investors and look forward to keeping you updated on our progress in the months ahead. I'd now like to open up the call for questions.
Thank you. If you wish to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. If you wish to cancel your request, please press star two. If you're on a speakerphone, please pick up the handset to ask your question. Your first question comes from Kate McCutcheon from Citi. Please go ahead.
Oh, hi. Good morning, Paul and Anna. Can I just check the timing of the raise today? It doesn't seem like there's anything that's changed at Langer. Is that correct? And now that you've just started to mine from Pit G, how has that reconciliation been going in terms of rate expected or anything else to call out on the performance there, maybe some comments on how the stockpiles are reconciling recently?
Yeah, thanks, Kate. So as we highlighted during the guidance, we anticipated that the first half of the year would be heavily weighted towards pit stripping in the G-pit , and that's gone absolutely to plan. In terms of production, it's largely been focused on using the stockpile from the MG3 stockpiles supplemented by a small amount of material that we mined in the fourth quarter last financial year, and the grade is performing as we expected.
Okay, got it. So this is purely about accelerating PLS today?
Correct.
Okay. And then an accounting question for Anna, if I can. So with those stockpiles being fed, how should we think about the inventory adjustments going through the P&L for this FY? And also any comments around D&A expectations for the FY?
Yes. Okay, what I can say is we're now publishing quarterly financials, so the best place to probably look for the D&A is our quarterly MD&A for our actuals because we're not providing kind of future guidance on D&A. As far as the stockpiles, I guess there's a couple of aspects to that. One, the medium-grade stockpile will continue to be expensed throughout the year as it's utilized, but we'll also be building the low-grade stockpile over the period as well. So what you'll see is an increase in the inventory balance. So the build of that low-grade stockpile is for utilization after the mining phase is completed.
Okay, so it's sort of a wash? There's nothing material to go through the P&L, per se?
No, it's the remainder of that medium-grade stockpile that will go through for the rest of FY26, assuming that we utilize all of that medium-grade stockpile this year. So you see that amount in the table we provided, which is that non-cash reversal of the previous stockpile impairment.
Okay.
Thank you. Your next question comes from Mitch Ryan from Jefferies. Please go ahead.
Morning all. Thank you for taking my question. Just looking at slide 25 and staying on Langer Heinrich year to date, just wanted to understand, it looks like you've mined 200,000 tonnes of ore and rounding errors, but 100% of that's just gone to the low-grade ore stockpile year to date. Am I interpreting that correctly? And can you sort of talk to us about what your expectation in the mine plan is for the low-grade stockpile build over the course of FY26 and FY27?
In fact, I think it's, if I remember rightly, it was 2.2, was it 3.6 million tonnes mined overall, of which waste, I think, 3.2, and it was 0.2 at low grade and 0.2 at medium grade that went to the stockpile.
Oh, okay. Right. So you're splitting it. And how should we think about, thanks for clarifying that. And then how should we think about the low-grade ore stockpile build or the mix between total ore going straight to the mill versus that being stockpiled over the course of FY26, FY27?
Yeah. So the general concept of operation, you remember we had a ramp-up drawing off the MG3 stockpile. Then we have a mining phase, approximately seven and a half, eight years, and then we go into the low-grade stockpile reclaim phase. So as we progress through this year, the first half is heavily weighted towards stripping of the G-pit to open that pit up. That's pretty normal. The second half of the year will be heavily weighted towards fresh mining ore. And I don't recall off the top of my head the numbers, Mitch, but what we'll do is we'll have a combination of fresh medium-grade ore that will go straight to either the ROM or direct FEED to crusher, and there'll be a low-grade component that will go to stockpile.
Mitch, maybe the only other thing to add is we haven't guided on the low-grade amounts in the guidance, but we will in our quarterly MD&A provide the actuals for the quarter.
Okay. Thank you. And my next question, just trying to understand, obviously, some of the key component of this is to accelerate the PLS. How much of it reduces, I guess, when you reach FID? Will it reduce that quantum of capital outstanding of 1.22? Does it reduce that, or is this sort of on top of the pre-production capital that you'd already outlined?
No, it's on top of, Mitch.
Okay. Perfect. That's it for me. Thank you.
Thank you. Your next question comes from Alastair Rankin from RBC Capital Markets. Please go ahead.
Yeah, hi. Good morning, Paul, Anna, Alex, and Paula. Just the first one, a bit of a broader question around the intent and signaling for this equity raise. So your uses is mostly for PLS development, about AUD 170 million, 20 million is for exploration in 2026, then AUD 100 million for working capital and future exploration. So should we just read this equity raise primarily as a schedule protection move for PLS development, or is there also some level of strategic option to accelerate your drilling and growth while Langer Heinrich is finishing the ramping too?
Yeah. So part of that planned FY26 exploration is the winter drilling program at PLS. And as you know, the working capital AUD 100 million also provides some flexibility for us to do some additional exploration at PLS going forward. So I think that's a reasonable assumption. I mean, the only other thing I'd note is we are still in ramp-up at Langer Heinrich. We're holding quite high inventory balances, so we want to ensure we've got sufficient liquidity and balance sheet flexibility going forward as well.
Yep, absolutely. I think that's a smart move. Just on the Patterson Lake South, on the long lead items that you've outlined, how are you balancing the early ordering of these long leads with the CNSC construction approvals process risk? So are there any criteria or milestones through that CNSC process that you're planning to use that will then give you a bit of comfort in placing those orders ahead of receipt of that construction license?
Yeah. The general concept is that we complete the front-end engineering detail work or design work and then move into the detailed design work around early 2027. And the purpose of doing that is to make sure that we achieve the construction licensing permit without any hold points that prevent us from accelerating into the construction process. So completing FEED and detailed design essentially de-risks us from any delays in the permitting process and provides us with a level of certainty in 2027 around the acquisition of the long lead time items.
Okay. That's understood. And just one final one, just around if there's been any incremental thought process put into the PLS funding roadmap following this raise. So again, on slide 24, you're covering your pre-FID needs, but then also your pre-construction CapEx is that AUD 1.23 billion, sorry, that was highlighted before. So what's your latest thinking on your ultimate funding stack around project debt, off-take prepay, partner farm down, or additional equity? And are there any sort of preconditions for each of these funding options?
Oh, look, I think you're right in that we've got a lot of options. The economic work that we've just put out demonstrates the strength of the PLS project. So I think we've got a lot of opportunity to build that how we want. Some of the key pieces around that, and I think I mentioned when we released our full year financials, will be the potential of bringing in a strategic partner at PLS. So we have had a number of parties interested in doing that. So that's certainly something that we will look at. We've got an existing lender relationship in place that there's some potential to consider extending that with our current lender base. But I mean, honestly, I think we've got a lot of options available. We've got some marketing to do to kind of underpin those future cash flows.
I think it's going to be very fundable, and our options are all open at this point.
Okay. Understood. Thanks for that.
Thank you. Your next question comes from Milan Tomic from JP Morgan. Please go ahead.
Yeah, hi, guys. Thanks for the call, and apologies if the question's been asked already. I dialed in a little bit late. Are you able to just touch on the FEED grade? You can see it's quite strong. Is that a function of the stockpiles performing better than expectation or the threshold going into the mill?
Yeah, thanks for the question, Milan. You're absolutely right. It's actually both. We have seen in recent months an uplift in the grade at the lower benches of the stockpile. So we had always anticipated it. Would have liked it a bit earlier, but yeah, we've seen that uplift in the last two months. We have had a small amount of mine ore that we've been blending in that has also given us a slight uplift.
Yep, and just on the low-grade stockpiles, is it fair to assume the current run rate in terms of just the speed at which you're building these stockpiles out, or is that going to kind of pick up moving forward?
Look, we haven't guided on that. So what we've committed to do on the low-grade stockpile is to provide actuals on a quarterly basis as we build the stockpile.
Yep. Okay. Thank you very much. That's it from me.
Thank you. Once again, if you wish to ask a question, please press star one. Your next question, it comes from Dim Ariyasinghe from UBS. Please go.
Thanks, guys. Just this was asked before, but just wanted to reiterate. I've got AUD 170 million PLS. How much of that is going to be spent over the next couple of years? So does it get spent over this FY, next FY? I'm just kind of wondering, broader piece, the timing of this raise versus, yeah, when you're actually going to start executing on PLS?
Yeah. So that portion of the funding for PLS takes us from essentially now through to FID, approximately the end of 2027. There's a range of things that we'll cover off as part of that scope of work. So the FEED will be the first piece. Accelerating that funding will allow us to advance that detailed engineering that we need for the CNSC process. So to the extent that we can get in front of that and ensure that we don't have any delays along the way, that's something we would like to do. So we would expect that that expenditure will take us through to that FID point. And then I guess the other pieces of that are the FY26 exploration, which I've touched on in the working capital. Paul, do you want to talk about the timing maybe? Yeah. Well, maybe I'll just cover that off.
I think, Dim, what we saw following the release of the PLS project economics and Paul can talk to his view on this is we really want to be in a position where we can advance PLS on an accelerated timeframe. So I think that was one of the key catalysts. I know Paul and Alex have been at WNA, and I think the demand story coming out of that is the other key piece of this.
Yeah. I think also Langer Heinrich performance has given us the confidence to believe that we've really broken the back of the mine. And with the remaining mining fleet arriving, we'll have 100% capacity on the ground middle of the first half of next calendar year. As Anna said, feedback from WNA was extremely positive. A lot of interest in long-term uranium supply, lots of customer inquiries, particularly for PLS capacity in the early 2030s. So I think given the funding, we're able to complete the FEED work, get into the detailed design, minimize project risk, and close out the CNSC construction approval process. So I think the timing's just really good for us.
Yep. Yep. That makes sense. I'm just trying to figure out what you actually get in terms of acceleration. I think everyone had it coming online around 2031. Yeah, that kind of makes sense. And then maybe just a quick one on Langer Heinrich. Kind of note that recoveries have drifted off a little bit. I was wondering if there was anything to talk to there. And can you just refresh us? What is its nameplate now? Is it 6 million lbs? Is that? He's still trying to right-size that for Langer Heinrich, please? Yeah.
Yeah. So in terms of overall recoveries, we're within the target range of 85%-90%. It is somewhat challenging in any process plant to achieve stable recoveries when your FEED grade is relatively variable. So I am actually reasonably satisfied with the overall recovery and that sustained level above 85% for pretty much the last 12 months. In terms of guidance, we set a guidance range this year of 4 million-4.4 million. Absolutely stand behind that guidance given the first two months' performance of this year. When it comes to FY27, what I can say is that we'll be in full production, both in processing and in mining as we kick off FY27. And we'll be in a position to provide FY27 guidance in July 2026.
But it's not exciting, I guess, at this point.
We'll let you know in July.
Yep. Okay. Cool. No, no. Thanks. Thanks, guys. Cheers.
Thank you. Once again, if you wish to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone. Your next question comes from Alastair Rankin from RBC Capital Markets. Please go ahead.
Oh, thanks, Dan. Just a quick follow-up. It sounds like the detailed design work at PLS is a really important part of ensuring the CNSC approval stays on track for completion at the end of 2027, calendar year 2027, I mean. What are you actually spending on there to de-risk the timing here? Are you adding headcount either internally or through a third party?
So there's a couple of things. So first of all, yes, we do need to increase headcount to get the work done. And a fairly reasonable amount of the AUD 100 million is part of the detailed design work.
I'd probably say a third. Alastair, is that 170? Maybe slightly more.
Yep. Okay. Understood. Thanks.
Thank you. Your next question comes from Branko Skocic from E&P. Please go ahead.
Yeah. Thanks for your time. Just a quick one on Langer Heinrich first. And the quarter-to-date production numbers looking quite solid annualizing towards the upper end of guidance. So maybe interested in your thoughts around the timing of any shutdowns or any seasonality we need to factor into the numbers over the next six to nine months, please?
So yeah, you're right. Performance to date, look, I'm very, very satisfied with how it's going. As usual in Namibia, we do see a bit of seasonal variation in water demand from local authorities, particularly around Christmas. We've addressed that in a couple of ways. First of all, NamWater has fully commissioned the infrastructure and have a demonstrated capacity to deliver about 110% of our long-term contracted demand. So we've seen an uplift in supply capability. Additionally, we've improved our water efficiency and reduced our water demand per ton of feed. And what that means is we've had an increase in the ability of our on-site bladders to supply water to the plant in the event that there is a shutdown. So at this point in time, we're not anticipating any significant issues that have an impact on our ability to deliver on the guidance.
Okay. Thanks for that. And then just a quick one on Patterson Lake South. I did note that NexGen received national significant status for their project, but I believe you guys did not. I just wonder if you guys received any feedback on, I guess, why you didn't qualify, and is this something you're potentially looking to receive moving forward?
Look, we won't comment on what NexGen may or may not be doing, but the C-5 builds out there. There's plenty of interest in ensuring that there are significant projects across Canada. Look, our project stands on its own merits, and we're absolutely committed to delivering the project and first production in 2031.
Yeah. No worries. Good. Yep.
Thank you, and final question just on relationships with the Métis population. I assume those discussions are progressing, but just when we're expecting to receive any updates there, please.
Yep. We've been working with the Métis Nation now for more than four years, particularly on the EIS and making sure that any of their concerns that they have raised have been more than adequately addressed. That continues to be the case. We are in commercial discussions with them and have been for quite some time with respect to developing a mutual benefits agreement, and we're continuing those good faith conversations right now. I'd like to think that we're able to come to a conclusion on those that meets the needs of our stakeholders and of the company in the not-too-distant future.
Okay. Thanks. Thanks for that.
Thank you. Your next question comes from Mark Wiseman from Macquarie Group. Please go ahead.
Good day, Paul and Anna. Thanks for the update here today. I just wanted to ask on the FEED and the detailed engineering phase, could you perhaps just give an update on now that you've had more time owning the asset and closer to the asset, are there any aspects of Fission's design or process that you're already seeing you can change or enhance? Thanks.
Yeah. Thanks, Mark. During the DD process, of course, we identified a couple of opportunities. We've since explored those opportunities and built them into the upgraded engineering and the updated economics. There's a couple of areas where we can broaden the footprint, improve the building layout, upsize some tanks, piping, pumps, that sort of thing. So we have identified a number of opportunities that we've explored and built into the engineering program.
Okay. Thanks, Paul. So there's nothing fundamentally that has changed with the underground mine plan or anything of that nature?
No.
Okay.
No. No. We'll continue to refine and optimize the process, continue to improve our mining method. So there is, of course, the ongoing optimization work that we'll continue to do through FEED.
All right. Thank you.
Thank you. There are no further questions at this time. I'll now hand back to Paul Hemburrow for closing remarks.
Thank you very much, everybody. Now, given the performance of Langer Heinrich, we absolutely stand behind the guidance as we drive towards full production in FY27. The PLS project update and strong economics underpin our commitment to delivering first production in 2031. The market outlook is extremely strong with the build-out of nuclear capacity driving uranium demand, and Paladin is exceptionally well-positioned to take advantage of this. I thank you very much for your ongoing support and look forward to updating you in due course. Thank you, everybody.
Thank you. That does conclude our conference for today. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.